


Broken For You

by ClaraOswald16



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Accidents, Coma, F/M, Heroes & Heroines
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-25
Updated: 2019-04-25
Packaged: 2020-01-31 20:46:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 11,843
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18599119
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ClaraOswald16/pseuds/ClaraOswald16
Summary: What will happen when one of the heroines of Paris gets seriously injured? Will they survive? And will Paris end up in ruins without their hero?Basically, I'm just really into emotional scenes that pull at your heartstrings. There might be some slightly triggering content(i.e. mentions of cutting, etc) Overall I think you'll like it! Enjoy!





	1. Late!

Adrien PoV 

"Adrien, you're going to be late for school," said Nathalie from outside the door. 

Adrien wearily climbed out of bed, "Sorry, I'll be ready in five minutes." He waited until he heard her footsteps go back down the hallway before finding Plagg and grabbing some cheese.

"Ugh, it's too earlyyyyy," complained Plagg.

"No, it's not. It's late. I'm already late for school because I overslept. Hurry and eat then get into my schoolbag, please."

He and Ladybug had been up all night dealing with an Akuma. He had barely made it to bed before collapsing. 

He found his usual outfit and went to the bathroom. Looking in the mirror, he saw hideous bags under his eyes and hair that was extremely tangled. After brushing his hair and teeth as fast as possible, Adrien grabbed his bag and hurried down the stairs. He hoped his father wouldn't find out, but he never knew if Nathalie was on his side or not. He decided to skip breakfast and ran to the car waiting outside. He hopped in and greeted Gorilla. Gorilla only grunted in response.

By the time he made it to school, he was 15 minutes late. Already accepting his fate of detention, he made no effort to run up the steps. 

"Adrien Agreste, I cannot believe you would do something so kind for Marinette. please give her her paper and be seated," said Mme. Bustier.

What? Marinette had covered for him? That was so kind of her. He reached in his bag and pulled out a piece of blank paper and handed it to Marinette. She thanked him and smiled. He would have to thank her later.

"Uhh, no problem! Anything for a friend!" Then he sat down and began doing the day's assignments.


	2. Falling

Marinette PoV

 

Even though Marinette had gotten maybe 30 minutes of sleep, she had somehow managed to be on time for school. Sure, she looked like death, but at least she wasn't late! It had been surprising to see that Adrien was running late. He was probably one of the only students who had never been late before, so she knew something had to be up. Nonetheless, it came naturally for her to tell Mme Bustier that he was retrieving an assignment she had left at home accidentally. She could only hope Adrien would follow along when he arrived.

After three hours of lectures and paperwork, it was finally lunch time. Marinette was starving since she had skipped breakfast in order to be on time. She got in line behind Alya and Nino, hoping that the cafeteria had something actually good to eat today, although nothing would ever compare to her family's cooking.

"Hey Marinette, I wanted to thank you for covering for me this morning. I accidentally overslept."

It was Adrien!! Omg!! Ok, she had to stay calm and accept his thanks without making a fool of herself. Here goes nothing.

"Uh, of course, Adrien! No problem! I know you would do the same for me! Not that you have to, or anything! Just saying that you're that kind of person!"

Ugh, she was rambling again! Why did she always have to do that around him? Why can't she just talk like a normal person, thought Marinette. Then she realized she was still staring at him.

"Of course I would, Marinette! You're one of my best friends! Well, I'll, uh, see you later then. Bye!" 

And then he was gone, off to find a seat at the lunch table. Marinette sighed. She was still blushing like an idiot. She hoped he wouldn't stop talking to her after that. She felt so stupid. Plus, she had totally forgotten about getting her food, and the line behind her was growing rapidly.

"Mari, could you hurry it up? We're really hungry and we want to get our food before the bell rings," said Kim, who was standing behind Marinette.

"Oh, sorry!"

She quickly picked up a bowl of fruit and a croissant and found where Alya, Nino, and Adrien were sitting. 

"Girl, is that all you're eating? I thought you said you were hungry! Here, have my soup," said Alya, sliding her bowl of what seemed to be Chicken Noodle soup.

"You don't have to give me your lunch! I had been holding up the line so I just grabbed the first things I saw. I can wait until dinner, no worries!"

"Just eat it, Dude. Alya can have my soup, I had a big breakfast anyway," said Nino.  
"What a gentleman, " said Alya sarcastically.

Marinette laughed, then finally agreed to eat the soup. It wasn't as bad as she thought it would be, so she managed to eat all of it. 

She snuck a glance at what Adrien was doing and was startled to see that he was staring at her plate longingly.(#Letadrieneat2k19) It didn't look like he'd eaten anything, and she also noticed that he looked just as tired as she felt. Hmm

She grabbed her croissant and held it out to Adrien. The movement shook him out of his daze as he saw the croissant. He smiled, nodded his thanks, and took it. 

"If you ever want a good snack, just come to the bakery. We have plenty of croissants that are even better than that," said Marinette without stuttering at all.

"I might have to take you up on that offer, Marinette. You know how much I love your Father's cooking."

She smiled, and was about to say something else but was interrupted by the sound of the bell ringing. Marinette grabbed her tray and dashed to put it away and get back to class, but she accidentally ran into Chloe, spilling her tray all over herself and falling hard on her ankle. (typical marinette:)

"You deserve that for not looking where you're going, Marinette. What a loser," scoffed Chloe, before marching indignantly out of the room.

She was going to be late to class for sure now. her friends had already left and she could tell her ankle was sprained. This is just what I need right now, she thought.

After about a minute of trying to stand and failing, she managed to get up and put her tray in the bin. Grabbing some napkins, she attempted to wipe off the soup and fruit from her clothes. Once she had gotten everything that would come off for now, she zipped her jacket up to hide the stains.

The tardy bell had already rung by the time she got to class, limping all the while. Her friends stared in confusion, probably wondering how she managed to go and get hurt the one time they leave her alone.

"Mlle Dupain-Cheng, are you alright?" asked Mme Bustier worriedly.

"Just fell on the stairs, I'll be fine, Mme."

Chloe snickered but didn't say anything, for once, thank goodness. Marinette found her seat and Alya gave her a look that said she didn't believe the story she'd told the teacher. Marinette whispered that she would explain later, and tried to concentrate on her work, even though her ankle was throbbing.


	3. Patrol

Adrien PoV

 

Father was not happy, as usual. Adrien had tried his best to come up with a good reason for oversleeping, but there was nothing that would get him out of punishment.

"Adrien, I am very disappointed in your behavior. Due to your inability to be punctual today, I'm going to have to suggest that you do not go out with anyone for one week. If you argue, I'll make it for two weeks. I will talk more with you when I return from London. Goodbye," said Gabriel, immediately hanging up.

He never let Adrien speak when he called, or spoke to him in person, either. He was bitter that his father treated him the way he did, especially after his mom disappeared. Mom had always stepped in and softened Father's heart. You could always tell he loved her, but Adrien never saw his father give him the same loving look. It was always stern and unforgiving. 

Marinette had hurt her foot today, and he knew that she had lied about what had actually happened because Nino had heard from Alya that Marinette had actually fallen after bumping into Chloe. She had been on her way to put her tray up so she had gotten soup on her shirt. 

Adrien felt bad that he hadn't said anything when he realized she was late coming back from lunch. Marinette was always being so kind and here he was forgetting what she had said about him. 'I know you would do the same for me.' He should have, but thank goodness Mme Bustier had been understanding due to her foot.

"Adrien, you're distracted again. maybe you should take a nap and work on homework later," suggested Plagg.

"I'm fine, Plagg. I just gotta get this finished before patrol tonight."

He needed to be ready in case something happened, but he also knew he needed some sleep. But his homework would not get done if he didn't do it now, and he couldn't risk his father punishing him even more.

Thank goodness he didn't have anything scheduled for today. It was rare that he didn't have some sort of lesson or modeling gig, but because he was grounded, father had canceled everything for the day, saying that he should rest and be prepared to work hard tomorrow.

Two hours later Adrien had finally finished all of his homework and decided to take a nap. Plagg woke him up after what seemed like five minutes.

"Plagg! Why'd you wake me up? I just laid down!"

"Actually, its been an hour, and you're needed to help Ladybug on patrol tonight."  
He'd been asleep for an hour? Wow. He still felt tired, but he was a bit better than before. 

"Ok Plagg, Claws Out!!!"

Tonight they had scheduled to meet at the Eiffel Tower since it had a good view of the entire city. Chat Noir seemed to have arrived before Ladybug, and his anticipation was growing. Even though he knew they couldn't reveal their identities(yet), he still hoped she would give him some sort of hint as to who she was under the mask. There had been a rosebush outside of Marinette's' parents Bakery, so after he had boughten two croissants from M Dupain, he had picked a rose for ladybug. She had already told him that she loved someone else, but who's to say she couldn't change her mind?

Ladybug startled him when she appeared behind him and then tapped his shoulder.  
"Hey! Don't startle me like that! How are you doing this evening Bugaboo? I got you a croissant if you want it."

"You're a scaredy cat, aren't you? Thanks for the croissant," She said as she accepted the croissant and took a bite.

"No problem, milady. So, what exactly are we going to patrol tonight?"

He then attempted to put the rose in her hair but she swatted his hand away and said, "Chat Noir, we're partners, not lovers. I thought you understood. But anyway, I thought tonight we could just sit here and watch for trouble."

"I totally understand bugaboo, I was just giving the rose as a friend, nothing more." His heart ached to say that, but he couldn't jeopardize what he had with her.

"Well, I'll head over there and watch, you stay on this side. Sound good?"

"Sounds good to me milady. Just don't disapurr on me," he said, winking.

Then Ladybug stood and started walking very slowly around the tower. She seemed to be limping a bit. He hoped she was okay.

"Did you hurt your foot, bugaboo? You know a kiss makes anything better!"

"Just a bruise, kitty. It should be fine without a kiss, thanks for the offer though."

He grinned and nodded. She turned and continued to walk/limping away. Resisting the urge to get up and help her was harder than he thought, but once she had finally sat down he took off to find some ice for her.

When he returned, he found Ladybug frowning and standing where he had been sitting.

"Where did you go? I thought you would tell me if you had to investigate anything."

"All I did was get you some ice so your foot will get to feeling pawsome faster, milady."

"Oh. Well thanks, Chat. I appreciate that, but next time could you please not disappear without telling me? I thought something might've happened to you!!"

Chat hadn't thought about that, but it was too late now, so he gave her the ice and then offered his arm to help her walk back.

"It's ok Chat, I can do it myself. Now lets focus, K?"

"Purrrrfect idea to me, bugaboo."


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah sry I can't think of a title for this chapter

Ladybug's PoV

Ladybug's foot hurt. A lot. The ice that Chat had given her helped, but after dealing with it all afternoon, she knew something was wrong.

Chat seemed to be behaving, for now. She never knew what he was up to. He was always being romantic, and she was starting to feel bad for turning him down. He was a great guy, but he wasn't Adrien.

Pulling her from her thoughts was a very loud screech that seemed to be coming from the outer parts of the city. She plugged her ears with her hands and attempted to stand up. She couldn't.

"Chat!! I can't walk. I fell today and I think it's broken. I'm sorry I lied to you earlier but I need you to take care of this by yourself. Come get me when you have the Akuma and I will purify it, but I can't do much else."

Chat Noir ran over to her and picked her up, carrying her to a more comfortable spot. "Here, you'll be safe and sound. Don't worry Bugaboo, I'll take care of you." Then he extended his baton and disappeared after the akumatized victim.

Ladybug felt so bad for having to sit out, but there was no way she could walk anymore, and running was out of the question. She needed to get home and wrap her foot so it would heal as fast as possible.

Chat Noir managed to take care of the Akuma fairly quickly, and after she had purified it, he offered to carry her home.

"You know I can't let you do that, kitty. But if you could get me to the ground, that would be greatly appreciated."

Back at home after slowly limping towards the bakery for over an hour, Marinette barely made it up to the stairs before she passed out on her bed, still her school clothes.

The next morning, it was back to the usual schedule, but first, she had to make sure her parents didn't see her injury. Even though it wasn't because of something that happened as Ladybug, she still felt embarrassed to tell her parents what had happened, so she decided against it.

She made it out of the house without a glance at her foot, but after walking on it normally for those few minutes, she wanted to collapse from the pain. Marinette made it to Alyas house and promptly plopped onto the ground. Alya laughed at first, but after Marinette had refused to stand, Alya had made her show her how the ankle looked. It was black and blue all over. Apparently falling hard on top of your ankle really injures it.

"Marinette, as your best friend, I beg you to go to the nurse at least and get something to help. You're only going to injure it more by not treating it, girl."

Alya was right, she needed to do something. So after Alya helped her to school, she immediately went to the nurse and explained what had happened. The nurse wrapped it up, gave her a pair of crutches, and told her not to walk on it for at least a week.

"It is hopefully a really bad sprain that bruised the bone, but at worst, it's a mild fracture. If you keep off of it, it should be fine," said the nurse after giving her some Advil for the pain.

Later on, after lunch, an Akuma attacked and Marinette had a bit of a dilemma. She decided to call Master Fu and ask him what she should do. He told her to anonymously tell one of her friends to come to his address immediately. he would give them a miraculous and they would help Chat Noir.

She found a pay phone outside and called Alya. Ladybug told Alya what to do and Alya was more than willing to comply. In almost no time at all, Rena Rouge was out defending Paris alongside Chat Noir.

Marinette was very proud of her friend, but she was a bit jealous. Why couldn't the magic of being Ladybug help heal her ankle? After the Akuma had been caught, Marinette transformed into Ladybug and met with Plagg to purify it.

Back at home, Tikki congratulated her on how she had handled the battle today. Marinette had yawned in response, opting for a nap instead of homework. She had told her parents what had happened to her foot, and thankfully they hadn't gotten too mad. That was her last thought before she fell fast asleep.


	5. Uh Oh

Marinette's PoV

The next day at school was boring until Mme Bustier decided that an impromptu field trip was needed because the class wasn't going to learn unless they had hands-on experience. Everyone was told to text their parents for permission, and then they loaded up onto the bus. Marinette sat by Alya and Adrien sat by Nino, as usual.

When they arrived at the park in front of Marinette's house, everyone was confused. Mme Bustier only said, "You all need some fresh air. Enjoy the scenery and write down your thoughts. I want everyone to de-stress and walk around. In a few minutes, we will head to the Eiffel Tower."Alya, Nino, Adrien, and Marinette immediately joined up and found the nearest bench. They chatted for a bit and Marinette pulled out her journal and starting designing an outfit.

At the Eiffel Tower, everyone waited their turn to go up the elevator to the top. When it was Marinette's turn, only she and Adrien were left. Oh no, this is going to be so awkward!

Once inside, Marinette attempted to pretend she was staring intensely out the window, until all of a sudden, the elevator came to a stop, about halfway up. Immediately they knew something was wrong. Adrien began banging on the door and Marinette looked to see if anyone was coming to help. 

That's when they saw the Akumatized victim at the bottom, holding the wires for the Elevator and grinning evilly. Adrien spoke to Marinette just as Marinette started to say, "I'm so sorry but there's no way out of this."

Then, again in sync, they said, "What?" Both were confused but then remembered the problem at hand. Adrien gave her a look that said, "I'm sorry" and then he yelled, "Plagg, claws out!"Before Marinette could react, Chat Noir--No- Adrien, had called his cataclysm and touched the elevator door. He then picked her up and carried her to the top of the tower. "Stay here, and hide!"

Then he disappeared after the Akuma.

Marinette was stunned and shocked. Adrien was Chat Noir!! She stood remembering everything she had ever told Chat, and realized that she had turned down the very person she had been in love with!! I'm so stupid! 

"Marinette!!, Focus!!", yelled Tikki, "You have to transform and help him! think later, act now!"

That snapped her back to reality, but just as she was about to transform, she saw Chat and the Akuma coming towards the top. Chat beat the Akuma and raced towards Marinette."Run, Marinette!"

But Marinette was frozen. She didn't know what to do. Should she transform and reveal herself or run away to hide, leaving Chat Noir without help? Before she could make up her mind, she heard the Akuma approaching from behind. The last thing she saw was Chat's eyes going wide as the Akuma swatted Marinette away, tossing her from the tower.

Chat Noir's PoV

Everything went in slow motion from that point. He raced to jump over the ledge and catch up with her before she hit the ground, but he wasn't going fast enough. Where are you, Ladybug!! I could use your help right now!! He could see Marinette as her head banged hard into the metal of the tower, and he knew that things were not good.

Seconds before hitting the ground, Chat screamed and pushed himself through the air, somehow managing to catch her right before she hit the ground. As he laid her on the ground gently, he could see a gash on her head from where she had hit it on the tower. He yelled for a medic, and then, using all the strength he had, he forced himself to go back and fight.

He hoped she would be ok. But he had to focus on the Akuma. His Classmates were all hiding inside the elevator shaft, and thankfully, the Akuma hadn't noticed them yet.

"Are you looking for me, little Akuma? Well, here I am! Come and get me!"

The Akuma chased him all over Paris while Chat awaited the arrival of his Ladybug. She was taking longer than usual and Chat didn't know how much longer he could hold the Akuma off. After realizing she wasn't showing, probably because of her injury, he decided to call Rena.

"Rena Rouge you are needed! Please go to the address that Ladybug left you and come find me! Hurry!"

"Of course! I'm on my way!"

What felt like ages later, Rena Arrived and they swiftly defeated the Akuma. Rena caught the butterfly and put it in a special container. Then she handed it to Chat Noir.

"Thanks for your help, I couldn't do it without you, Rena."

"No problem. But I hope Ladybug gets better and comes back soon because I miss her."

"Yeah, me too. Well, uh, bye!"

Chat jumped away and landed in an empty alley, immediately detransforming.

"Wait, Plagg, How did I not detransform earlier? I used my cataclysm an hour ago!"

"You couldn't leave, so I made sure you didn't change back. But don't ever make me do that again!! Also, I need A LOT of camembert right now!" Then he immediately fell asleep.

"Ok then, greedy," said Adrien. But then he remembered Marinette. She knows! And shes hurt badly! He immediately took off running towards the Eiffel tower, but when he got there, there was no sign of her. His class was standing around looking scared and confused.

"Adrien! Dude, Where'd you go? Marinette almost died! I can't find Alya either, but Mme Bustier is making everyone go home so she can make sure Marinette is okay," said Nino.

"Oh no. We need to find Alya then get to the hospital immediately!!"

"Don't worry dude. I'm texting her right now. She said she'll meet us there. let's go!"


	6. Fear

Alyas PoV

Marinette. Her Best Friend. In a coma.

She couldn't believe what they were saying. Refused to believe it. Yet there she was, laying on the bed with tubes in her mouth and an IV in her arm.

She couldn't take any more. Nino hugged her and took her into the hall."She's going to be okay. She's a fighter, you know it."

But Alya didn't have a clue how anyone could fight a coma. Marinette's parents were crying and holding her hands, and Adrien was sitting dejectedly in the waiting room. he looked terrible. Not that she looked any better.

Her day had been going great. She had gotten to hang out with Nino at the park and then she got to help freaking Chat Noir with saving Paris! But the joy of that had quickly left her when she got the text from Nino. She didn't know what to do without her friend.

Nino shook her from her thoughts when he suggested they all go get some fresh air. Adrien quickly agreed, but Alya couldn't bear to leave Marinette. She looked so small and fragile lying there, but Alya knew what she lacked in strength she made up for in heart. The ladyblog was blowing up with comments about Rena Rouge, but Alya didn't care. She only wanted her friend back. the doctors didn't even know if she would wake up at all, but Mme Cheng had immediately retorted that their daughter would, in fact, wake up and that she would be doing so very soon. Alya applauded their bravery, but anyone who cared could see it was all a front, just like she had been doing. Suddenly her phone rang. it was Nino.

"Hey, what's up?"

"Are you sure you don't want some ice cream? Adrien had to go home and now I'm all alone. I could really use some company."

Alya couldn't help but smile. She loved Nino and felt so lucky that she had found a guy so great. She knew he would help her through the next few days, no matter what.

"Ok, you convinced me. I'll be there in ten minutes."

Then she hung up and went to tell M and Mme Dupain-Cheng goodbye.

They got ice cream from Andre and then walked to the park. Nino was right, fresh air really did help calm her down.

Adrien's PoV

Adrien couldn't believe that Marinette was in a coma. He also couldn't believe that she knew that he was Chat Noir. Adrien wondered if she'd even remember that if--when she woke up. Optimism was key, he knew, but it was so hard to have hope when even the doctors had no idea what was going on.

After his mother had disappeared, he had stayed positive that she would come back, because he just knew that she would never leave him on purpose. Adrien still held on to that hope, even though it dwindled every day.

Now he someone else he had gotten close to had disappeared--sort of. Adrien felt that it was his fault because he hadn't taken her to a safe spot, he'd only put her right in the middle of the battle. Plus, he still hadn't heard from Ladybug after the attack. Then he remembered the Akuma in his bag. How am I supposed to de-evilize it if I can't contact Ladybug?

He reached into his bag and found some camembert, then gave it to Plagg.

"Plagg, I need to transform again so I can call Ladybug. We need to get rid of this Akuma before it causes more problems."

"No can do, dude. I'm way too worn out to transform you right now. Plus, if Ladybug isn't also transformed, there's no way you will reach her."

Adrien sighed, "I guess you're right Plagg, I'm just worried about her, and this Akuma. Do you have any ideas for what I should do with it?"

"Nope. But as long as it stays in that container, it should be fine until you can get with Ladybug."Fine then. Let's get home before Father realizes school is already out."

At home, Nathalie knocked on his door, "Adrien, dinner is ready, please come downstairs."

"Could I take dinner in my room, tonight? It's been a rough day."

"I'm afraid not, Adrien. Your father has decided to join you, and he expects you there. You have five minutes."

What? Father was going to eat dinner with him? "Did you hear that Plagg! I can't believe it!"

"Yeah yeah, I heard. Make sure and grab some more camembert while you're there. Have fun."Then Plagg disappeared to his hiding spot. Adrien headed downstairs and entered the Dining room. Two places were set at opposite ends of the table, and His father was already seated.

"Good evening, Adrien. How was school? I heard about an Akuma attack near the Eiffel tower, I presume your class had already evacuated?"

"Umm, yes. We had just gotten on the bus and left immediately when the Akuma arrived, sir."

Why was this so awkward? It was like talking to a stranger that you happened to share a house with.

Then the chef came and presented the meal, so they began eating. Soon after taking his first bite, Adrien remembered what had happened to Marinette. He hoped Father wouldn't hear about it or then he would realize that Adrien had lied. Adrien decided to bring it up anyway.

"One of my friends, Marinette Dupain-Cheng, got hurt in the attack. She had stayed behind to be picked up by her parents. She's in a coma now."

"Oh, really? Too bad Ladybug wasn't there to use her power. Then she would've been healed."

Oh! I haven't considered that! All I need to do is wait for Ladybug to get better and then she can heal Marinette and purify the Akuma! 

That excited Adrien, but he still had to figure out how to find Ladybug. Maybe by the next patrol, she would be doing better. Otherwise, Adrien would have to beg Plagg for help. He knew that PLagg was keeping information from him, so there had to be some way to get him to open up.

"Adrien, did you hear me? I have finished my meal and will be retiring for the night. Sleep well."

"Oh! Uh, goodnight Father!"

And then he was gone, again.


	7. Plans

Marinette's PoV  
Marinette did not know where she was.

She could hear voices and feel that her head hurt miserably, but other than that, she had no clue as to where she was.

The last thing she could remember was falling from the Eiffel tower and hitting her head. Chat had been trying to catch her, hadn't he?

Oh—right, there's also that news. Chat was Adrien? How did she not figure that out?

Somehow in her comatose state, she was able to remain calm about the biggest news of her life. Man, her head hurt!! She wanted to call out for help, but she couldn't move, she could only make out faint whispers from people she couldn't see.

What was happening to her? Was something wrong? Was she dead? Marinette had only thoughts and an overwhelming urge to sleep for company.

Thinking that maybe sleep would help her forget how much her head hurt, she soon drifted off into the land of dreams.

Adrien's PoV

By the next morning, Adrien had figured out the perfect way to get Plagg to talk. It was almost foolproof. It simply relied on the fact that Plagg loved his cheese more than anything else. But nonetheless, when being threatened to lose food, Plagg usually crumbled like camembert.

Adrien hurried to get dressed and scoop a snoring Plagg into his bag before rushing out the door. Nathalie gave him a glare as he slid into the car, but didn't say anything. Then Adrien requested that they stop by the Dupain-Cheng Bakery for some breakfast. Nathalie agreed only once Adrien had promised not to break his diet.

Once at the Bakery, he greeted the Dupain-Cheng's and asked if there was any news about Marinette. They simply shook their heads sorrowfully in reply.

So Adrien promised to pick up Marinette's schoolwork and take notes for her. Then he finally ordered himself a croissant and a wheel of camembert.

He could only hope Nathalie didn't see that, but Plagg surely smelled it. He felt his bag move, and he knew Plagg was excited. Why did he love cheese so much? He sure hoped Ladybugs Kwami wasn't like this too, especially with her injury.

Adrien had spent most of the night worrying and planning. He needed a way to get with her in civilian form. Why wouldn't she just let them reveal to each other? It would make things so much easier!!

"Adrien! Are you finished yet? You're going to be late for school," called Nathalie, looking impatient as ever.

"Yeah yeah, I'm coming!"

He stuffed the croissant in his mouth and got into the car. Gorilla grunted as Nathalie told him to go, and they were off.

That's when Adrien realized he hadn't done any of the homework he had been assigned! Maybe the Mme Bustier would be lenient because of what happened to Marinette. No! That's terrible! Why would I want that to happen?!

He wondered how Alya was doing and hoped Nino was being a good boyfriend. Although Adrien was a bit jealous of his friend, he was also so glad that Nino had found the perfect girl.

Once at the school, he greeted a very tired looking Alya and an equally exhausted Nino. Adrien gave them both hugs before asking Alya, "How are you holding up, Alya?"

"I'm managing, but if she's smart, she'll hurry and wake up before I go crazy from missing her, and that's something no one wants to see."

Adrien understood. He also missed Ladybug, but at least she wasn't in a coma, right?

"Well, I had breakfast at the Dupain-Cheng's, and I promised to take notes and gather homework for Marinette, so you don't have to worry about that, Alya. I don't want you to have to worry about anything else."

"Oh, wow, thanks, Adrien. I know Marinette will love seeing your notes."

"Why is that?"

"Oh! Uh, no reason! Forget I said that!"

"Umm okay."

Adrien wondered why Marinette would care if he took notes for her. It wasn't a big deal, right?

Inside the classroom, Adrien was immediately met by Chloe and Sabrina, who seemed to want an autograph.

"Listen Chlo, I know you like to brag that we're friends, but I already gave you an autograph, and you rubbed it in other peoples faces. Please stop asking. I have other things to worry about right now."

"Aww! But Adrikins I swear I'll never ask again! Just this once?!"

"No, sorry Chlo, but I need you to leave me alone right now," he stated as he turned and found his usual seat next to Nino, only to find Alya in his place. Oh, right. Alya needed him today. Adrien began going up the steps to sit in Alya's seat."

"Sorry dude, but I gotta sit with my girl today. You okay by yourself?"

"Oh yeah, no biggie!"

Adrien spent the class taking notes for Marinette and adding little doodles all over. He also left her a note telling her that he was sorry he hadn't caught her sooner. Adrien knew he would forever blame himself if she died and he had been the one who could have saved her.

At lunch, he sat a couple of seats from Alya and Nino and contemplated how to get in touch with Ladybug. Maybe if he figured out her identity, he could talk to her? Or what if he could talk to Rena Rouge in civilian form? That was his best lead. Maybe they could work together to find Ladybug and make sure she was okay. They also needed to figure out how to purify the akumas without Ladybugs Yoyo.

Tonight, he would begin his hunt for Rena Rouge.


	8. Rena

Alya's PoV

After a long day at school, plus a good two hours of homework and an hour of talking to Nino on the phone, Alya was tired. So when she heard the sounds of an Akuma happening, she was pretty pissed.

"Aww, come on! I was just about to lay back and binge Sherlock for the rest of the night," she yelled to no one in particular before grabbing her phone and hurrying to Master Fu's for her miraculous. Somehow she just knew that Ladybug would not be making an appearance. Alya hoped this Akuma wouldn't cause too much damage because there was no way they would be able to fix it without Ladybug.

Alya wondered what Chat had done to the other Akuma. Had he found a way to purify it? Or did he use his cataclysm on it?

At Master Fu's, she quickly got the miraculous and ran into the nearest alleyway to transform. 

Hopefully, Chat was already there.

As usual, the Akuma had decided to make its way to the Eiffel tower, so Rena decided that they should guide it away to somewhere safer before attacking. She used her flute to call Chat and she told him her idea. He immediately agreed it was a good plan and they decided to get it to go to the park.

Chat was really good at playing cat and mouse even though, in this case, he was the mouse. Rena ran alongside him for a bit and then created an image of Ladybug standing in the park, with her miraculous in her palms.

"Oh No! Ladybug!" yelled Chat before doing a double take and realizing that the real Ladybug would have transformed if she had taken off her miraculous.

Chat simply looked at Rena and winked. The Akuma was easily falling for the trick even though Hawkmoth was trying to tell him it was a lie.

Rena Rouge and Chat had finally led the Akuma to the park, and Chat had yelled cataclysm to destroy the akumatized item. Rena had somehow summoned another jar that seemed capable of holding an Akuma and gave it to Chat. He thanked her.

"Listen, Rena, I love working with you and all, but you and I both know we need Ladybug. I need your help to find her. I think something has happened to her. She hasn't answered calls and I have no way of contacting her civilian form. Plus, I now have two akumas to worry about instead of one!"

"Ok, ok Chat! Calm down. This is a big problem, I agree, but we can work this out, I'm sure of it. Even though she probably wouldn't want it, if we were able to find out her identity, it would solve all our problems. So I suggest we start investigating, in the suit and out. Are you willing to reveal?"

Alya knew it was asking a lot for a reveal, but it did seem like a good idea. If they could work together out of costume, they'd have much more time to investigate together.

Chat seemed to be thinking real hard about what she had said, but finally, he said, " Yes, that sound like a great idea, I'll do it."

"Alright then. Let's go somewhere more hidden and we can detransform."

Chat led her to a quiet alleyway near Marinette's house, and then, in sync, they both said, "Detransform me!"(A/N, yes Ik that's not what they usually say, but I'm in a rush and forgot Rena's detransforming phrase so deal with it Lol)

And when they opened their eyes, both were stunned to see the person behind the mask.

"Adrien?!"

"Alya!"

Adrien's PoV

Adrien couldn't resist smiling at his luck. Alya was Rena Rouge! She would be perfect in helping him uncover Ladybug's identity! But he also realized something he needed to tell her.

"Ok, besides the surprise of all of this, I need to tell you something since you're, well, you're you," he sighed, the said, " Marinette knows that I'm Chat Noir. I had to transform in the elevator to get us out of there, so, uh, yeah. I'm so sorry I didn't catch her before she hit her head. I should have gotten her to somewhere safer, but I didn't, and I'm so sorry."

"Well, first of all, Adrien Agreste, you have nothing to be sorry for. You caught her, didn't you? There was no way you could've gotten to her any sooner than when you did, so stop blaming yourself. She would've died if you hadn't caught her, so you saved her life. Thank you for saving her. Trust me, it means the world to Marinette knowing that you saved her."

"Oh." That was all he could say. Alya knew just what to say, and somewhere deep inside he knew she was right, but right now, all he could think was that he had failed his friend.

Alya looked up at him and seemed to be contemplating whether or not to speak. But in the end, her need for truth won over secrecy and she said, "Marinette had--no, has a crush on you. It's really bad, She's obsessed with you. She loves you, Adrien. I understand that you love Ladybug, but Marinette is such a great person and she deserves everything she ever wants. And she wants you."

Wow. Adrien was stunned. Marinette, crushing on him? She had hated him the first day they had met. Sure, they had made up and were friends now, but he always thought she acted funny around him. Maybe it wasn't because she didn't like him, it was because she did like him and was nervous! He couldn't believe he hadn't thought of that before!

Then, of course, Plagg decided to loosen the mood by popping up and screaming for camembert.

Alya's kwami, Trixx, only laughed at Plagg and flew back into the miraculous box.

"Wow, I seriously can't believe I didn't notice that before. Why didn't she ever tell me?"

Alya shrugged, " She tried to, many, many times. But something always stopped her. One time she wrote you a sweet valentines card but forgot to put her name. Or there was the time she made you a scarf for your birthday, and somehow your father got a hold of it and said it was from him. I wanted her to tell you, but she had seen how happy it had made you get a gift from your father, so she decided to leave it alone."

"You mean Marinette made that scarf for me?! I can't believe a father would lie and say it was from him!"

"Yeah, we don't know how that happened, but now you know. It's really great talking about Marinette and all, but we need to focus on Ladybug right now. Where do you want to meet to work?"

"What about the school library? They have good computers and we can go there after school tomorrow," Adrien suggested.

"Sounds good, I'll see you then, Chat Noir. Goodnight!"

"Goodnight!'


	9. Investigation

Alya's PoV

The next morning Alya woke up in a cold sweat. She had been dreaming about Marinette's fall. Except for this time, Adrien hadn't caught her in time.

Trying not to worry too much about the dream and what it might be trying to tell her, she got dressed and grabbed her bag. Nino had already tried to call her this morning but Alya had decided he would have to wait until she got to school. Alya needed to focus on figuring out 

Ladybugs identity so they could heal Marinette. She didn't know if Adrien had already come to the same conclusion that she had once she got home last night, but either way, it only made Alya want to solve the mystery even more.

Alya skipped breakfast and hurried on to school, hoping she hadn't forgotten anything. She felt for the necklace on her neck and smiled. Last night she had gone to Master Fu's to return Trixx, but he had only handed the miraculous back and told her to take care of it until Ladybug was back. 

Even though that wasn't how Alya had ever pictured being given the Miraculous to keep, she couldn't help but feel proud that Master Fu trusted her enough to let her keep it, even if it was only temporary.

Once at the school, she greeted Nino and Adrien, the latter looking pretty rough. She assumed that meant Adrien had probably stayed up all night trying to figure things out, but from the look he gave her, it seemed it had been a waste of time. Maybe the Library had books relating to the heroes of Paris? If not, there had to be someone else out there besides her that was keeping tabs on the Heroines of Paris.

Thank goodness the school day flew by and before they knew it, it was time to really start investigating. Alya quickly came up with a lame excuse to get out of Nino's invitation to do homework with him and then made sure everyone had left before heading over to the library where Adrien was already working.

Adrien's PoV 

Adrien hadn't been this tired in a long time. Besides Ladybug, Marinette had been on his mind all night. The more he thought about her, the more he was realizing how obvious it was that she liked him. He also couldn't help but notice that she was really great. Plus, he still had that lucky charm she had given him. Sometimes it really seemed to be giving him luck.

Wait--Lucky charm? That's what she had called it right? Was it just a coincidence that she had called it the same thing as Ladybugs power? Probably. Lucky Charm is a fairly common phrase, plus there was no way Marinette could be Ladybug since she would have transformed right after he did.

Alya cleared her throat, bringing Adrien back to the current situation. He would have to worry about Marinette later.

"So, I was thinking that first, we should see what other info the library might have on the heroes of Paris, then if we don't find anything, we can go online and see what other fan pages might have."

Alya had probably been thinking about this all day, just as he had. It was also surprising that Nino hadn't seemed to suspect a thing even though Alya's excuse was so clearly a lie. She had told him she was going over to Marinette's to study. How could he have believed that?!

"Oh, yeah that sounds great." Adrien also remembered his plan for Plagg, but he would have to tell Alya about that through text so Plagg wouldn't figure anything out yet. The plan was simple, all Adrien had to do was tempt Plagg with cheese and then refuse to feed him until he spilled. Knowing Plagg, it wouldn't take long before he gave in.

Adrien decided to start in the H section and headed over there. Alya went to the M section. Once she was out of sight, Adrien pulled put his cell phone and texted her his other plan. Then he realized that Alya could do something similar with her Kwami too, so he asked her if Trixx was obsessed with anything and then, finally, started looking for books.

Alya's PoV

Why was there nothing at all that mentions Miraculous? She had been through the M's, the L's, the C's, and even the K's, but there was nothing. It's like the information was so secret that only one or two people knew anything at all about it. Honestly, Alya could have guessed that from the start, but it was frustrating her now because she knew that meant it was going to take a while before they found out who Ladybug was.

Finally, after a good hour spent scouring the shelves for any hint towards Ladybug's identity, Alya officially gave up and turned to the internet for answers. 

It seemed Adrien had given up already seeing as he had pulled up several websites and was reading intently.

"Ok Adrien, Lady Wifi is here to help!"Adrien chuckled, "You know that was your supervillain name, right? You could have said--" 

" Shhhh we're in public! You never know who could be listening!" Alya whisper-shouted at him.

"Oh yeah, you're right. Sorry," replied Adrien unapologetically.

Despite there being no information in any books, there was an abundance online. sadly most of it came from her own blog, and the rest seemed to be repeats of her own findings. 

Thirty minutes later, with barely any progress made, Alya felt her phone vibrate and she checked to see who had sent a text. After seeing the name, she glanced up to Adrien who winked. Ugh, that kid was starting to be more like Chat Noir every second. Adrien had texted that he thought it was time for Plan C, aka bribing the kwamis. she replied back with a location for them to go to that was more private and they agreed to head over there. Alya hoped they would get done before dark, or else she would be sooo grounded.


	10. Hint

Adrien's PoV

There was a nice secluded alleyway near Alya's house, so they met up there and summoned their Kwami's. Plagg popped out of his bag and immediately started whining about how hungry he was.

"You're a terrible owner! You never feed me on time!!"

"You'll get food soon enough, as long as you cooperate."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Questioned Plagg, but after noticing his surroundings and seeing Alya with Trixx, he realized what was going on. "So, you couldn't find any answers at the library? And now you're resorting to starving us for information? How cruel!"

"Calm down, Plagg. You know I'd never let you starve. Just tell us what you know about Ladybug's identity or even just a hint! We have to help her!"

Alya smirked at the Kwamis' temper and asked Trixx if she could help.

"Well, I'll tell you one thing, and hopefully it won't give away too much. There is an important connection between Ladybug and Marinette Dupain-Cheng."

"And," Included Plagg, "If you want Marinette to wake up, then you have to find out who Ladybug is. It's the only way."

Confusion was written on both their faces. They already knew that Ladybug sending her Lucky Charm would wake Marinette up, so why did the kwami's even bring that up?

"Uh. yeah, we know that."

"Slow down, Adrien. You actually don't. Ladybug will not show up until Marinette wakes up, plus the Lucky Charm would still do no good. There's only one way to wake Marinette up, and I can tell you, you must know Ladybug's Identity."

"What!!" Adrien and Alya both yelled.

Sure, this was good to know, but it only made things more difficult without helping them figure out Ladybug's identity. Alya was asking Trixx why they were just bringing this up now, but Trixx only gave them one hint.

"Consider this. How is it that all current superheroes are the same age, go to the same school, and basically you all know each other's identities, except for Chat Noir has not revealed to anyone else. No offense Alya, but why would Ladybug pick both You, Nino, and Chloe out of all the people in Paris?"

This thought had never occurred to Adrien, and looking back, he was confused at how he hadn't noticed that before. Did all of them just happen to go to the same school? It was a bit weird, but still, Adrien couldn't fit all the pieces together(yep, that's our oblivious cinnamon roll XD). Plus, hadn't Adrien already ruled out Marinette as Ladybug? There was just no way that shy, clumsy girl could be the heroine of Paris, right? Apparently, Alya was thinking the same thing.

"Maybe we need to pay Marinette a visit? I really don't believe that she could be Ladybug, but right now it's the only lead we have."

"She can't talk to us, so what's the point? I wish I could, but I just can't face her, not yet. I still blame myself even though I know I shouldn't. You can visit her, but I'll pass. Sorry."

Adrien hated being so open like that, but he hoped Alya would understand. He was pretty confident that Marinette wasn't Ladybug, so what good would it do to visit her? Marinette was amazing, but she was also in a coma, so they wouldn't be getting any answers from her anyway.

"Alright, Adrien. I'll visit Marinette on my own. I was going to anyway. But please stop beating yourself up, Marinette would not want you to do that, okay? She would blame herself for it, probably will. That's just her nature. She doesn't want anyone to feel bad so she puts it on herself. But in this case, it's not either one's fault. It's the Akuma. So just stop. Get over it and move forward, if not for yourself, then for Marinette."

Wow, straight to the point. Adrien knew Alya was right, but deep down, he couldn't stop the nagging whispers that said it was his fault, that he should be the one in a coma right now. Maybe he should just die, the world would be better off without him anyways. He couldn't stand the look of pity on Alya's face, so he turned and left without another word.

"I'll keep digging until I find something, I promise. Everything will be okay, Adrien. It has to be."

Yeah, right.

Alya's PoV

As she watched Adrien walk away, Alya could sense that he was still hating himself. Really, who didn't hate themselves for something they'd done at some point or another? But still, you had to keep moving past it and find the good. She could only hope Adrien wouldn't become depressed.

Alya made it home just in time and quickly headed to her room to start on homework. Her sister called her down for dinner but Alya wasn't really hungry so she decided to keep working. How she wished she could call Marinette and talk to her about the day. It had become routine, and it hurt to think they might not do it again for a while. It had seemed clear to Adrien that Marinette couldn't possibly be Ladybug, but he hadn't ever seen Marinette's outgoing side. Marinette was always putting others before herself, as well as going above and beyond to make people smile. She was her own kind of hero, and she didn't even see it.

Glancing at her phone, Alya saw that she had three missed calls from Nino and that it was already midnight. Even at this late hour, Alya knew Nino would still be up, so she called him back immediately.

"Hey Nino, sorry I missed your calls! What's up?"

"What were you and Adrien doing at the Library today? Is there something you want to tell me about?"

Alya considered it for a moment. Nino was her boyfriend, and she hated keeping secrets. Plus, he was also a superhero himself, so maybe she would let him in on it. Adrien wouldn't mind, right? They were best friends, so he'd find out sooner or later anyway.

"Okay, fine, I'll tell you. But you have to promise not to say a word to anyone."

"Deal, now spill!"

"Adrien is Chat Noir. You already know I'm Rena Rouge, and of course, I know you're Carapace. But that's not it. Ladybug has gone missing, and according to our Kwami's, it has something to do with Marinette. Apparently, if we can figure out Ladybug's true identity, then Adrien's Kwami will tell us how to wake Marinette up."

"Woah!! Dudette, that's crazy!"

"Yeah, I know. I'm still trying to process everything myself."

"So, what's the plan, how are we going to find out who's under the mask?"

"Well, my kwami gave us a small hint, but it's our only lead for now," Alya told him what Trixx had said and he gasped.

"You think Marinette could actually be Ladybug?!"

"Well, it's certainly a possibility, but who knows?"

"Too bad we can't ask her. How's Adrien handling this? Wait, did you tell him she has a crush on him?"

"Uh, yeah I did. She's gonna kill me when she finds out, but apparently, when they were trapped in that elevator, Adrien revealed that he was Chat Noir, so I'm sure she won't mind too much."

The next couple of hours were spent talking about what to do, and Alya telling him everything she knew. They still had no idea of what to do, so they would just have to keep searching. Until then, it was up to them to protect Paris.


	11. Patience

Adrien's PoV

Two whole weeks. That may not seem like much to most people, but to Adrien, it was agony. He had taken to personally punishing himself for what he did to Marinette, and while it helped to distract him, it wasn't helping anyone figure out Ladybugs identity.

On top of all his inner turmoil, he was also constantly having to fight akumas. Both Alya and Adrien were getting annoyed at the insane amount of akumas that had popped up. Of course, it was clear that Hawkmoth had noticed Ladybug's disappearance and was using this to his advantage. When Adrien found out that Alya had told Nino everything, he had been irritated but understanding. His help had been very appreciated over the past fourteen days. They were alternating who had Akuma duty, but still, everyone was so tired. It was time to pull in one more recruit even though they hated having to.

School had been very awkward without everyone's favorite class representative(minus Chloe), everyone was feeling the absence but no one said anything about it. Today, Chloe had even had the nerve to ask Alya how Marinette was doing, almost sounding as if she cared. But since they didn't have any other options, Alya told her and invited her to her house to study after school. Chloe was shocked but accepted the invite(Only after hearing that Adrien would be there too).

Adrien could see how hard this was on Alya, but she had Nino there for her, so he wasn't worried. She wasn't as dumb as him. She would never hate herself for something she hadn't done.

But that's just it. He had done something. It was his fault. No matter how many time Alya would tell him that he did everything he could, he still denied it. Everything would be great right now if Adrien had ensured Marinettes safety before going after the Akuma. Instead, he had been selfish and rude and left her there. At least that's how he remembered it. Others would say otherwise.

Alya's house was crowded with people that evening. Adrien was barely able to come because his father had sent Nathalie to check on him just as he was leaving through the window. There was no point in asking anymore, he knew what they would say. Nathalie didn't open the door, so Adrien had yelled at her and asked to be left alone for the evening. For whatever reason, she agreed and walked away.

For the first time in two weeks, no Akuma attacks occurred today. It was a relief, if only small. Nino called him over to Alya's room, and Adrien saw that Chloe was already spread out across the bed giving everyone disgusted looks.

"If you want to leave, then go. But if you want to help us save Ladybug then please stop looking at us like garbage and listen," stated Adrien. Everyone turned to stare at him. It was like they had never heard him speak like that before. Did he really sound that depressed? He needed to work on that, no one had time to worry about him with everything else going on.

"Of Course, Adrikins! But are you okay? You sound like a zombie!"

"Well, staying up all night fighting Akuma's isn't the best thing for my sleep schedule, y'know."

Chloe gasped. "What!! What the heck do you mean by that?!"

God, she was so dense. "You know exactly what I mean. I'm Chat Noir. Alya is Rena, and Nino is Carapace. Wasn't that obvious? Why else would we be so determined to help Ladybug?"

"Uh, well, um, I don't know!! What's wrong with Ladybug anyways?"

This was going to be a long night, thought Adrien, sighing. "She disappeared three weeks ago, don't you remember?"

"Oh, right. But nobody knows what happened, so how do we know she needs saving?"

That was a good question. And for once, Adrien didn't really have a good answer. Really the only thing he knew was that Ladybug would never shirk her duties and definitely wouldn't ignore his calls. It just wasn't like her. Plus there was the fact that the Kwami's said that something was up. Really, that was their only proof.

"Our Kwami's told us so. They said she was in danger and the only way we could help her was if we figured out her true identity," said Alya.

"Right, and without her, Hawkmoth has pulled out all the stops. We're all exhausted. We need your help as Queen Bee."

Nino had still not spoken but was watching the conversation intently, probably enjoying Chloe's exasperation.

"Of course I'll help! Anything for Ladybug," she cheered, exaggerating Ladybug's name in an obnoxiously high pitched voice.

"Great, now that that's settled, we can all go home now. Adrien or Alya will let you know when it's your turn to help," said Nino, making Chloe jump.

"Okie Dokie then. Adrikins, will you walk me home? It's dangerous on the streets for a lady like me," she whined.

There was no he would get out of it, so Adrien agreed and said goodbye. He knew everyone had quickly become tired of Chloe's company, so he grabbed her hand and they left. The walk home was full of Chloe talking and Adrien pretending to care. After finally dropping her off, he transformed and headed to a nearby roof to start patrol.

Agreeing to do it by himself this evening had been a bad idea. Immediately after finding the perfect perch, a scream echoed through the streets and Adrien jumped into action. The rest of the night was a blur, he didn't even remember coming home and collapsing in bed. The only thing that told him that was what happened was when he woke up the next morning in bed.

Another week went by, torturously slow. No new information came out about Ladybug, and Paris had already declared her either dead or missing. People were starting to move on, which put all the attention on Chat Noir. This was not how he had expected things to go. Sure, Ladybug had always been the favorite, but Chat understood why. He didn't need anyone but Ladybug to appreciate him.

He had been learning all he could about Marinette from Alya, Nino, and her parents. It was so surprising to realize how little he actually knew about her, and he only grew to miss her more.

On a night that he got a break from patrol, Adrien decided he needed to do it. He needed to visit Marinette. Maybe she couldn't say anything, but if the stories were true, she would be able to hear him. He needed to get these thoughts off his chest, and Marinette was the perfect person to talk to.

Upon entering the hospital, Adrien bumped into the Dupain-Chengs on the way out. He greeted them and told them he was going to see Marinette.

"Oh, I'm sure she'll love that! She'll never believe me when I tell her you visited!" Marinette mother had exclaimed. Did Marinette really not believe that Adrien wouldn't visit her? They were friends, so why would it be a surprise? Maybe it was just because she had a crush on him.

"Okay, well I better go before visiting hours are over," he said. They quickly said goodbye and Adrien found Marinette's room number.

Only the sounds of the heart monitor beeping and the oxygen whooshing in and out were heard when Adrien entered the room. Marinette was laying there so peacefully. It was almost enough to believe that she was sleeping. Which she was, sort of. Adrien sat down in the chair by her bed and looked at her. She was pretty, even with all the tubes and injuries. Her black-blue hair cascaded down her shoulders elegantly. It had gotten a little longer, but it was still just as stunning.

Wait, Ladybug had the same exact hair color. The more Adrien thought about it, the more things clicked. They both wore their hair in pigtails and were about the same height. He looked to the nightstand and saw a set of earrings, little solid black circles.

Who wears black earrings? Hold on, those were about the same size as Ladybugs miraculous.

"Is she really..?" He mumbled.

Plagg appeared then.

"Have you figured it out yet, Adrien?"

Well, Marinette did go the same school as everyone on the team, plus there was no denying that Alya was her best friend. Of course, Ladybug would pick her friends for help.

That's when he knew.

"Marinette Dupain-Cheng is Ladybug," he gasped. The girl he loved was right here, in front of him. All this time! And she liked him back! He can't hold back the tears of joy coming to his eyes. This was his soulmate. This beautiful artist and hero. She was incredible, and without realizing it entirely, Adrien had come to learn that he loved both sides of her. And now he knew that they were the same person!

But she was in a coma. How would they get her back? He had to get her back. Adrien clasped her hand like a lifeline.

"Come back to me, bugaboo," he whispered.


	12. Finally

Adrien's Pov

"Plagg! How can we wake her up?! Please tell me! I know the truth now!" Adrien was crying now, he needed Marinette to wake up!

"Okay, I'll tell you. You have to kiss her. (and since we're all about consent here) It doesn't have to be on the lips. But I have to warn you, there's still no way of knowing what damage has been done from the head trauma, so when she wakes up, be prepared. She might not be the same." Plagg answered. He was floating around worriedly, probably thinking about Ladybug's kwami, Tikki.

Adrien thought for a moment. Waking her up might mean she wouldn't be the same, but at least she wouldn't be in a coma, right? Did it really matter if she was different? No, it didn't.

"I'm willing to take that risk, and no matter what, I'll still love her," murmured Adrien. He quickly pulled out his phone and texted Alya and Nino, explaining what he was going to do and asking for them to get Marinette's family here right away. They replied saying that they were on their way. This had to work. He couldn't let everyone down. Marinette deserved life, and Adrien would make sure that she lived. A long, happy, loved life. Hopefully with him in it.

Gently, he lifted Marinette's frail hand to his mouth, pressing a soft kiss on her cool skin.

"I love you, Marinette Dupain-Cheng. Please don't leave me before we can experience life together," he said, hoping she heard him. Hoping she would come back. 

Marinette's PoV

A voice broke through the darkness.

"I love you, Marinette.."

Adrien? What was he doing here? Wait, he said he loved her! It was dark all around, and she felt dazed. Like everything was a dream, like she wasn't really there. The last thing she remembered was thinking about how her crush was also her partner. Adrien is Chat Noir. 

That's when she realized that she could feel something holding her hand. Adrien! He was right there, just out of reach. She wanted to see him, to tell him she loved him. She had to wake up! Fighting with everything she had, she forced her heavy eyelids to open.

It was so bright, but that didn't matter. She was awake. Adrien was here. He had figured it out. She was alive! 

Looking at his beautiful face, she carved his features into her memory. Those emerald green eyes that shone like a cat; that wavy blond hair that never stayed put. Marinette could get used to this. Wait, she was staring! Quickly snapping out of her trance, she whispered, "Adrien, You figured it out, didn't you?" The smile on her face as she looked at him was contagious. When he heard her speak, he burst into tears again.

He leaned forward and grabbed her other hand, and in response she sat up slowly, bringing her forehead to rest against his. This must be a dream, he would never actually be here, would he? 

"Of course, anything for you Bugaboo," he purrs. Adrien glanced at the door before returning his gaze to her. "I told everyone to come, so, um, before they get here, would you, uh, like a--"

And with that, she cut him off with her lips against his mouth. It felt like heaven. This better be a dream, or she would die of embarrassment. But no, this felt too real. Those pink lips of his were too soft for her imagination. He really was exquisite.

After a good minute, they broke apart, smiles wide. She murmurs, "I've been wanting to do that for a long time, Kitty."

She finally had everything she wanted, and she wasn't about to let her anxiety get in the way. She had Adrien and Chat Noir! What more could Marinette ask for? This was her chance to experience everything she had ever dreamed of. She would not let go easily.

"Me too. I love you Marinette. Every side of you is perfect, don't ever doubt that." whispers Adrien, "And I'm so glad it was you behind that mask, I couldn't have asked for a better partner by my side."

Yeah right, she was a klutz and terrible at talking. Then it hit her that she had been talking confidently to Adrien for a long time. Of course, fate was like that sometimes. Maybe, just maybe, they both felt that they were out of each other's leagues. But in reality, they were meant to be.

"If you say so, kitty."

"Oh you bet I say so," he said, then kissed her again.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~Two Weeks Later~

Marinette would never get used to it. Having Adrien as her boyfriend had been a figment of her imagination for so long that, now that it was actually happening, she couldn't believe it. She still couldn't fully understand why Adrien wasn't disappointed that she was Ladybug. But she wasn't about to argue with fate.

Tonight they were going on a double date with Nino and Alya. They were going to see a movie and eat at her parents' patisserie, much to her dismay. Thankfully, her parents loved Adrien, so it was no big deal. They invited him over more than Marinette did! And Adrien couldn't seem to get enough of their food. It was like no one fed him! (*Cough* #feedadrien2k19 *cough*)

After getting released from the hospital, Adrien, Alya, and Nino had told her about everything that had happened while she was gone. It was shocking that so many things could go wrong just because Ladybug was gone! Of course, she immediately de-evilized all of the akumas that Adrien had collected, sending a huge wave of butterflies all over Paris. She had thanked everyone for their troubles, including Chloe(Who still didn't know who ladybug was). Her ankle had healed nicely, and she was finally able to defend Paris once more.

Life was Miraculous.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay people, that's the end! I know I kinda rushed into that ending, so I wanted to know whether you wanted me to leave it here or continue the story(That would mean something else not fun happens, but if you want it, I've got a few ideas!). So anyway, let me know your thoughts in the comments if you like it! Have a magnifique day folks!


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